The background description provided herein is for the purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work of the presently named inventors, to the extent it is described in this background section, as well as aspects of the description that may not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the present disclosure.
Various equipment and methods may be used to lay flexible or rigid pipe or tubing for both on and offshore operations. With respect to offshore operations, an offshore vessel may be used to dispense and lay flexible or rigid pipe or tubing from a pipelay reel. Pipe or tubing may be unspooled from the reel and laid on the seabed, for example. Pipelay reels may generally be vertical or horizontal reels—that is, a pipelay reel may be configured on an offshore vessel such that the reel rotates on a horizontal plane or a vertical plane as the pipe is unspooled.
The process of installing or initiating pipe onto a pipelay reel for spooling, before the pipe can be laid, can be a relatively time consuming, difficult, and/or dangerous process. Additionally, the installation or initiation process may require a variety of machinery and tools, as well as workers to be present at or near the free end of the line and the spool. In particular, initiation of pipe onto a pipelay reel may include attaching or coupling a starting end of the pipe to the reel and, in particular, the drum portion of the reel, such that the pipe may be fed onto and spooled onto the reel. Conventional pipe initiation methods commonly use a combination of pulling, hoisting, and sometimes hydraulic push systems to align a starting end of the pipe onto the reel. Additionally, conventional systems often require the use of cranes and manbaskets, as well as fall arrest equipment, such that workers can help position the pipe onto the reel. In this way, processes for initiation of pipe onto a pipelay reel can demand a relatively high amount of time and equipment. Moreover, where pipe is to be abandoned, or removed from the reel, such as after all of the pipe has been unspooled and laid on the seabed, processes for decoupling or detaching the starting end from the reel may involve more time and equipment. Additionally, in some cases, the processes of installation of the pipe onto the reel and abandonment of the pipe from the reel may require the use of different equipment, thus increasing storage demands.